After a series of twists, turns, leaps, bounds and sticking her landing, an 8-year-old gymnast from Great Neck will compete in the Junior Olympics later this month.
At the 2025 AAU Gymnastics and TNT National Championships in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Caila Smith placed first in the Gold Platinum division which qualified her for all four gymnastics events – floor, balance beam, vault and uneven bars. This is not common for most gymnasts heading into national level competitions like the Junior Olympics.
The news came as a surprise to Caila and her family, however, who all learned she had qualified as she stood on the stage receiving her award in front of the entire competition audience.
“Wow, it was a surprise,” Yuan Cai said. “… It’s not an easy task.”
Her parents spoke on behalf of Caila, who was away at gymnastics camp, saying their daughter was proud of her accomplishment already.
“We’re really proud of her,” her father, Barry Smith, said. “She’s determined and works hard and is committed.”
Caila competes in USA Gymnastics at Progressive Gymnastics in New Hyde Park. During the off-season, she competes in the AAU Gymnastics league, which hosts the Junior Olympics competition.
The AAU Junior Olympic Games will be held from July 23-26 in Houston, Texas. Caila will compete in the Xcel Gold category against gymnasts of all ages from across the country.
To qualify, Caila had to rank in the top six across all age groups in her level at the national competition in Florida.
At the Florida competition, Caila not only qualified in all four events but also won first place all-around in her category. All-around scoring encompasses the gymnast’s performance in all four events.
Caila has only been competing for two years, starting right before turning 6, yet managing to accomplish this feat so quickly was attributed to both natural talent and a fierce drive.
She is in the gym for an average of 12 hours a week, yet practice also continues to be carried out at home.
Her mom described Caila’s determination to learn how to do a handstand when she first started. Every day, multiple times a day, Caila would practice her handstands and her mom would log each and every one after hundreds had been recorded and the length of time she could hold each one.
Over the two years, Caila has made strides in her performance.
Her mom reminisced about one of Caila’s first competitions, where she accidentally saluted to the wrong side before taking the beam and was a little wobbly in her performance and in comparison to how far she has progressed.
“Just like little cutesy toddler gymnastics,” her mom said. “But in two years since she has grown so much.”
Caila’s mom referred to her age group as the “baby beasts,” notably due to their age and size yet strong tenacity.
“They’re like really, really little, but they come in and they kind of shock people because, yes, they’re little and small, but they come in and do really good gymnastics and end up winning,” her coach, Erin McGrath, said.
McGrath said she was elated to see Caila’s hard work pay off.
“I see her putting in private time, working super hard during practice and so the fact to see that all come to fruition was really, really cool,” McGrath said. “And it’s a really cool experience to know that she gets to experience that.”
McGrath said Caila’s accomplishment comes down to her commitment to the sport, calling her drive and dedication a “coach’s dream.”
“If she wants to get something, she will,” McGrath said. “She’ll get it no matter what she has to do, how long it’s going to take, what drills she had to do.”
Despite her accomplishments, Caila was described as a humble gymnast who goes out of her way to support and uplift her teammates.
“If she sees a teammate kind of suffering a little bit or they’re lagging behind, she’ll pick them up and she’ll make some sort of joke and then it will cut all the negativity,” McGrath said.
McGrath said her gym promotes their athletes to focus on going into a competition to have fun. She said if they are focused on having fun, then it reduces their stress and helps their performance.
Stepping into her first Junior Olympics, Caila’s mom said her daughter’s focus now is just to enjoy the moment.
“I think she felt like she already accomplished something,” her mom said. “So she is actually not thinking too much about it. She’s very excited.”
